Amberjack will make you work

If you're looking for something powerful to pull your drag this weekend, look no further than amberjack.

If you're looking for something powerful to pull your drag this weekend, look no further than amberjack.

Head to the offshore springs and wrecks at 95-100 feet. AJs in the 40-pound class mean business, so bring heavy gear. You will need 100-pound line and 125-pound leader. Bluerunners, angelfish and bee-liners are prime baits and they won't last long once they're dropped. Hook baits with a 8/0 or 9/0 hook above the anal fin and hang on. Grouper and snapper are stealing bait at 50 feet. For grouper, arm yourself with the lightest gear possible to get more bites. Thirty-pound line and 50-pound leader will do the job on most fish, but it's not a bad idea to have a rod rigged with 50-pound line and 80-pound leader. Cut squid and sardines are great choices for dead baits, with live pinfish and bluerunners perfect live choices. Snapper fishing also should be done with the lightest tackle possible. Twenty-pound line and 40-pound leader is a good start. Fluorocarbon leader is a smart idea. Dress up a 2/0 hook with cut squid or live shrimp. Shad and sardines work well for snapper.

Inshore, sheepshead are ready to clean your hook if you're not properly prepared. Medium/heavy tackle in the 20-pound range is best. Once hooked, sheepshead need to be pulled out of lairs before they wrap your line around a piling or rock.